US Postal Service 2008 Annual Report Download - page 69

2008 Annual Report United States Postal Service | 69
Liability. Any debt or obligation that is
owed by the Postal Service at some
future period of time.
Mailing Services. Market-dominat-
ed products as defined by the PRC.
These are products for which the
Postal Service has market power to
set prices substantially above costs
without risk of losing business to
others. The Mailing Services prod-
ucts include: First-Class Mail letters
and sealed parcels; First-Class Mail
cards; Periodicals; Standard Mail;
single-piece Parcel Post; Media Mail;
Bound Printed Matter; Library Mail;
Special Services; and single-piece In-
ternational Mail.
Operating Expense. Expenses that
are incurred in providing our primary
business services and products.
Operating Margin. A financial indica-
tion calculated by dividing income from
operations by operating revenue.
Operating Revenue. Revenues that
are earned from our primary business
services and products.
OPM. Office of Personnel Manage-
ment. The agency that manages and
maintains the government retirement
and health benefit plans.
Package Services. Mailing category
offered for any merchandise or printed
matter weighing up to 70 pounds.
These services include Parcel Post,
Bound Printed Matter, Library Mail,
and Media Mail.
Payable. Money that is owed by the
Postal Service.
Periodicals. A class of mail formerly
called second-class mail that con-
sists of magazines, newspapers, and
other publications.
Postal Inspection Service. The in-
vestigative arm of the Postal Service
responsible for investigating criminal
acts involving the mail and misuse of
the postal system.
Postal Regulatory Commission
(PRC) (formerly the Postal Rate Com-
mission). An independent federal es-
tablishment with oversight responsi-
bility for the Postal Service to review
and approve rates, review financial
data, and hear and rule on rate and
service complaints.
Prepaid. Payments made in advance
of service being provided.
Present Value. The value today of
a future payment that is discounted
at a stated rate of compound inter-
est. For example, the present value
of $100 that will be paid to the Postal
Service 10 years from now is about
$38.55, if we discount that $100 at
a rate equal to 10% interest com-
pounded annually.
Priority Mail. Priority mail is a 1–3-day
non-guaranteed delivery service.
Receivable. Money that is owed to
the Postal Service.
Recognize. To record in Postal Ser-
vice accounts as income or expense.
Repositionable Notes. Reposition-
able Notes are specially designed
and applied “Post-It” type notes that
let mailers affix a message to the out-
side of the envelope, calling attention
to the mailer’s product or service to
help the mailer get an extra edge.
They are First-Class Mail and Stan-
dard Mail products.
Shipping Services. Products that are
not Mailing Services and are consid-
ered competitive products. The com-
petitive product list includes: Priority
Mail, Expedited Mail, Bulk Parcel Post,
and Bulk International Mail.
Special Services. A category of ser-
vices that add value to mail by provid-
ing added security, proof of delivery, or
loss recovery. These services include:
Certified Mail, Registered Mail, Deliv-
ery Confirmation, Signature Confirma-
tion, and insurance up to $1,000.
Standard Mail. Mailing service offered
for any item, including advertisements
and merchandise weighing less than
16 ounces that are not required to be
sent using First-Class Mail. Standard
Mail is typically used for bulk advertis-
ing to multiple delivery addresses.
Universal Service. The Postal Ser-
vice’s mandate and commitment to
the nation to provide mail delivery ser-
vice at uniform and reasonable rates
to everyone, everywhere.
U.S. Mail. Any mailable matter that is
accepted for mail processing and de-
livery by the Postal Service.
Workshare. Tasks performed by mail-
ers that otherwise would be done by
the Postal Service, such as preparing,
sorting, barcoding, and transporting
mail. Reduced postage rates are of-
fered to these customers.